Shadow Rising
by Beliel
Summary: Yaoi, AU. In a universe of magic and forgotten legends, what happens when an evil organization calls upon powers it can't control? Multiple chapters.
1. Prologue

This is an AU fic, the Gundam characters aren't mine, the story is. I hope you enjoy reading it. Comments, and especially suggestions, are welcome and encouraged.  
**  
Prologue**

"Be careful!"

"Shh! Don't worry, I'm fine."

"Just... Watch out, okay Duo?" The older boy looked at his twelve-year-old companion, then glanced down the hall again. "Wizards're dangerous marks."

"I know, just lemme concentrate." Duo muttered, then grinned as the lock to the door finally gave up and the two young boys slipped inside, Duo sticking the lock picks back in his braid. Both of them stared for a moment at the room before them, then grinning triumphantly at each other.

The things in the room were enough to keep them and the gang of street children they supported fed and warm for months--years maybe. Of course, they couldn't possibly steal it all, but if they got the right items the money they got could last them a while.

"You take that part of the room, I'll take this one." Solo whispered, walking silently to a table covered in expensive-looking statuettes. "If it looks like magic... Leave it alone. Don't get hurt."

Duo gave his older friend a "who, me?" look, dodged the swat Solo aimed at him, and ran to the part of the room he'd been assigned to. He poked around the items a bit, stuffing a few promising things into his bag before spotting a rack of weapons in the corner. His eyes immediately found a wicked-looking dagger and he grinned, picking it up and turning it in his hands for balance. It was too fine a quality knife for a wizard, he finally decided, sticking it in his belt.

He examined the rest of the weapons, touching a large, ebon-handled scythe and even lifting it awkwardly off the rack. It was a beautiful weapon; far too big for him to carry out, or handle, but it was nice. "Oi, Solo!" he called softly, "How to I look?" he giggled and struck a pose, the scythe towering over him.

From across the room Solo looked up, eyed Duo with a raised eyebrow, and slipped a golden letter opener into his own pack. "Ridiculous. Put it away." He couldn't hide a smile at his friend's antics though.

"Nyah. I think I look great." Duo stuck his tongue out at Solo, turning to put the scythe back, when a blue lidded-chest caught his eye. Crouching to examine the box, Duo set the scythe across his knees, frowning a moment as he attempted to figure the lock out from looking at it. He drew out his lock picks again, selecting three, and started to fiddle with the lock. It was tricky, but he was certain he'd get it to cooperate with a little persuasion and the right application of force on the tumblers.

"I'm glad this wizard's never in town." Solo commented from across the room, examining a strange painting on the wall and wrinkling his nose at it. "Wonder why the guy just leaves all this treasure in a place he never visits. It's like he's begging for someone to come in and snitch it."

Duo gave a small grunt of effort and smiled as his efforts were rewarded with the satisfying click of a lock opening. "Well, then we're just obliging his wishes, aren't we, Sol?" The twelve-year-old put his lock picks away and opened the trunk. Duo's eyes widened in alarm as pure darkness ran up along his arms from where his hands touched the open chest; he had time to open his mouth, but not enough time to shout before the darkness covered him completely.

"Right!" Solo said cheerfully. "Hey Duo, check this out! S'ugly as sin." Solo squinted at a strange mask, waiting to hear his friend's reply. The fifteen-year-old turned around to stare across the room after a few seconds of silence. "Duo?" There was no one else in the room. "Duo?! Duo!"

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Duo woke up slowly, a pounding ache behind his eyes and a rather wooly feeling in his head disorienting him. Stared at darkness for a while, then opened his eyes. He blinked a few times, then sat up abruptly, hands searching his face, feeling all over his forehead and skull. Only after he'd assured himself that there was no bump or cut on his head did the boy let his hands drop to his lap. He stared straight ahead for a while, eyes wide, not looking at anything.

There was nothing to look at. All he could see was darkness: black, complete absence of light. It frightened him, but he was sure he wasn't blind. He was sure... He hoped his eyes were fine. There just... Wasn't any light to see anything by.

He felt around him, fingers encountering the scythe's handle, and he clutched it, staggering to his feet. He still had his bag over one shoulder, and the lock picks in his braid and the knife at his belt...

Closing his eyes against the darkness Duo began to walk. Stumbling, directionless, and blind, he used the scythe as a cane, keeping him upright; he fumbled his way forward into darkness.


	2. Chapter One

Hey! Much thanks to everyone who reviewed the prologue. But especially, thanks and big hugs to Rin, Chiad, and Jordon. Jordon, who inspired this fic unwittingly, Rin for helping me work out the plot, and Chiad for being the best beta reader EVER. These three deserve lots of muffins!  
  
I don't own GW, etc. This fic may get graphic later on, be warned.  
**  
  
Chapter One**

The warrior was neither tall, nor imposing. In fact, his stature was singularly unimpressive; he barely reached five feet, and his build was as slight as a girl's. Yet the small warrior carried himself with the dignity and poise of a king, walking through the camp with all the confidence and concern of a lady taking an afternoon stroll through her rose garden. He was most definitely a warrior, despite his casual demeanor; the two thin blades at his hip, the metal headband, the minimal, but high-quality arm and leg armor he allowed on himself, they were good signs. The old-fashioned hair-style his black hair was done in, however, was what really gave it away. Any fool with money could have false confidence, armor, and weapons, but no young buck out to prove himself would wear that hairstyle.

The bandits watched him walk past, heading for the center of the camp, before they gathered the wits to react. One of them finally nudged his neighbor, half laughing. "Lookit him. He's just a kid. What do you think he's about?"

Further on, where the warrior was advancing, a hand reached out and halted him. "Oy, punk. Go home to mommy; you don't want to play with the likes of us."

The warrior looked down at the hand on his arm, then at the bandit; a large man, with a full, messy beard and a scar marring his left cheek. The warrior disengaged his arm from the man carefully, looking away from the large bandit.

"I am not here to speak with you. Leave now, and you may be spared." The warrior's voice was soft, but pitched so that all around him could hear the words. He stepped forward again, and found himself facing a wall of edged steel; the bandits hadn't taken his caution well. He did not look surprised.

"Very well. I hope you may all die with honor," the warrior said, calm. He did not look as if he believed they would die honorably, he had no doubts about how much honor they lived with.

"Shut up you little twerp, I'll—" No one would learn what the man was going to do, because the large bandit was rather suddenly missing vocal cords, and a neck. There was a brief, terrible silence as the large bandit's body slowly fell forward with a heavy thud, his head toppling sideways with a less audible thump. The warrior watched the other bandits' expressions as they finally registered their friend's death, the sudden presence of the warrior's blades in his hands, and the blood staining one of the thin crescents of steel.

The warrior looked on, impassive, indifferent, as the expressions of the men around him turned from shock and a touch of fear to fury and bloodlust. He was horribly outnumbered; the slightest of his opponents was twice his weight, and they were well armored and armed for a band of thieves. The warrior merely crouched in anticipation as the first man charged him with a roar.

* * *

"Sir."

The soft voice instantly diverted Heero's attention from the bloody scene around him. When he and his riders had followed the sign of smoke to this place, none of them had expected quite such a display. They had been hoping to find this camp of bandits, but they had been expecting to find the camp alive. They had hoped the smoke was the smoke of a smoldering bandit fire; they hadn't dreamed it would be the smoke of a fire whose fuel was the body of the bandits. The stench was nauseating, and he could hear a number of the newer recruits retching somewhere off to the left.

"Yes, Barton?" Heero turned and approached his second in command, and the captain of his rangers and scouts. There was no man Heero would rather have at his back, or in his service.

The ranger captain was slim and tall, his hair a pleasing shade of brown, swept forward in a style that concealed a great deal of his face and one of his bright green eyes. He was in simple brown leathers, adding only a dash of green to the practical clothing in the form of his trousers and armbands.

"Look here."

Heero knelt next to the leader of his scouts, looking in the direction that the man pointed. At first all he saw where human footprints, but the area was littered with footprints; it had been a camp full of people not too long ago. Then the man noticed what his ranger had; the tracks led away from the camp, which wasn't particularly significant, but there were no nearby signs of the tracks returning, and around the tracks the dark stain of blood dotted the dirt and foliage.

"Hn."

"Do you think...?" Trowa glanced sideways at his commander, one hand already on his bow.

"There might be a survivor." Heero acknowledged to the half-spoken question. Glancing back to see that the other officers were getting on with the distasteful task of combing the camp, he stood, motioning one of his officers over. "Finish checking the area, then set up camp upwind," he said curtly. He nodded to Trowa, joining his ranger captain in following the tracks into the forest.

They traveled in silence, Trowa pausing now and then to check the tracks, then picking up the lead again.

* * *

"_You look a mess."_

"I know."

"_Well, clean up. You smell worse than you look. Which is saying something, for a human."_

"... It was a waste of time. The leader didn't know anything."

"_At least you took care of some trash."_

"Yes. But I'm no closer to my goal then I was before." The warrior growled, a noise of frustration and anger. He was stripping off his meager armor, and removing his bloodied shirt. His copper skin was decorated in an elaborate and sinuous dragon tattoo, the ink marred in three places by parallel scars. He placed his things neatly on a rock by the stream.

"_You are so impatient."_

"_If you'd only listened to my advice and—"_

"Shh!" the tattooed man crouched, drawing a pair of thin blades and staring warily into the trees, shifting his stance and placing his back to the rocks. After a few moments of tense stillness, a bird whistled from a nearby tree, causing the warrior to twitch his whole attention to that direction, then relax with an expression of chagrin.

"_Getting a little jumpy, are we?"_ The voice was sarcastic and amused.

"I thought I heard something," the man grumbled, putting his swords away.

"_I'm sure you did." _The speaker's tone was condescendingly amused.

"Shut up," the man snapped, sitting to remove his boots.

"_Well! You're in a mood today."_ A strange noise of metal scraping against rock made the warrior lift his head and watch his companion for a moment. _"What's the matter?"_

"..." The warrior stared at his companion in silence for a moment, then snarled, fingers tightening until they nearly crushed his boots. "What do you _think_ is the matter?! I'm getting nowhere! Every lead I find is old, or faulty, or has nothing to do with it; all just wastes of time! Chasing bandits across the countryside! Finding petty dark wizards in their towers! None of this is getting us anywhere and you ask me what's _the matter_?!"

"_Tsk. Temper temper. You have no patience, Chang Wufei, this is a fault."_

"I have patience when I need it, I _need_ results! Don't you dare lecture me on this." Wufei said very softly but fiercely, eyes narrowed as he watched his companion.

"_You don't have patience, not even when it would suit you. But I won't lecture you." _The soft voice hissed, a sound of resignation almost like a sigh escaping the creature.

"Good." Wufei looked at the boot in his hand and set it down carefully, despite his urge to fling it far away. He grumbled under his breath for a while, continuing to remove his clothing. When he was done he slipped himself into the pool of water in the rocks, eyes closing a moment as the cold fluid hit his already tense muscles like a hammer.

The warrior stood still in the water for a moment, before reaching up and unbinding the braided knot of hair on his head, slowly undoing the hairstyle until his black hair fell loose and free, long, straight, and a bit blood-caked.

"_Why do you insist on wearing that disgraceful thing?"_ His companion had moved to the top of one of the rocks by the pool, and Wufei looked up at the coiled from of the small dragon as it lay, watching him.

"It is a reminder." The warrior said shortly, easing himself further into the water and taking handfuls of gravely sand, using the rough method to scrub the flaking blood off of his body. "As long as I am a shame to my clan, I will were it."

"_You never shamed your clan." _ The small dragon clicked a few claws nervously on the stone at Wufei's answering glare. _"But you will be stubborn, any valid argument I place at your feet will be entirely ignored."_ The small dragon lay it's head on the stone, eyes slitting mostly closed.

"Mmph." Wufei grunted agreement as he ducked his head under the water, beginning to work the grease and dirt and blood out of his hair.

* * *

Heero walked silently by Trowa's side as the two of them trudged back to camp. They'd followed the trail for almost two hours before the ranger had lost rack of it, and despite a thorough search that lasted upwards of three hours, neither man had been able to find any more trace of the man they had been pursuing. Both men were frustrated, but neither showed this as any more then a slight tension around the shoulders and eyes. Going back was quicker at least, they didn't have a vague track to follow at the pace of a snail, they walked at normal speed, which for them, was almost a brisk trot.

When they left the forest for the clearing, their own group's camp was visible to the west. The walked on, in continued silence, until the reached the edge of their own camp, nodding as the sentries hailed them.

"Commander!" A young man in green livery hailed Heero as he and Trowa entered the camp proper.

"Yes?" Heero nodded sideways to Trowa, releasing the ranger to make his own rounds of the camp, to make sure things were in order as he faced the young man with the worried expression.

"A message from the capital sir! You are—"

Heero raised a hand, motioning the young man to follow him to his tent. The commander's tent was only slightly larger than the normal tents, located at the center of the camp the tent's only great distinction was in being located directly next to the green and gold flag of the Sanq kingdom. Holding the flap back for the messenger to enter, Heero followed the boy inside.

"Continue." Heero said brusquely, sitting on his cot and watching the messenger shift nervously.

"New orders sir." The boy said after only a moment's pause, "You are to head to the border town of Cerauge. Details of the mission are here." The messenger offered Heero a scroll, then stood stiffly at attention while Heero opened and examined the contents of the scroll.

"Hn. Go eat."

"Thank you commander!" and the boy was out of the tent before Heero could even glance up to acknowledge the salute.

Heero scowled down at the scroll in his hands, rolling it up very carefully and standing to pace the cramped space inside his tent. Cerauge was two weeks ride away, and he did not like the few details that had been included with his order to investigate possible disturbances in the town.

The tent flap opened and Heero turned around to meet the very green eyes of his ranger. The two stared at each other a moment, silent, and then Trowa nodded once, the gesture one of 'all is well' and Heero nodded back slightly, an acceptance of Trowa's wordless report.

"We head for Cerauge tomorrow." The commander said, without preamble.

"Yes sir." Trowa replied softly.

"Here." Heero handed the ranger the scroll and stood waiting, watching the impassive face as his captain read the orders.

"... I don't like this, sir." Trowa said softly, rolling up the scroll.

"Neither do I. We don't have a battle mage in our group, and I have the feeling we'll need one."

"They do say assistance will meet us there." Trowa pointed out softly, handing the orders back to his commander.

"Yes." Heero agreed. "But not what sort of assistance. Warn the men to be on their guard when we approach the town."

"Sir." Trowa nodded, waited a moment, and slipped out of the tent when Heero said nothing more.


	3. Chapter Two

Not mine. Etc.

Thanks, as always, to Chiad, for her wonderful patience and beta-ing, not to mention being willing to point out my errors! All flaws are due to my last minute rewrites.

And of course, thanks to Rin, and to everyone who commented on the Prologue and Chapter One, I like hearing the feedback! It makes the muses happy! .

**Chapter Two**

Quatre frowned at the gloom surrounding him, feeding a little more power into the floating light above his head. The magic orb did grow brighter, but it failed to illuminate the gloom any more then it already was; the darkness was almost physically resisting the invasion of light, and the globe of magic only managed to illuminate a small circle around the young man's feet.

He walked cautiously forward a few steps, looking around often, ears straining for any sign of other beings around him. He was undergoing the final test of a paladin, one of the youngest men in centuries to take this test, but only about half the people who took it survived to /become/ paladins, and most of them were half again his age, if not more, and had a lot more experience with demons.

Of course, wandering a plane of shadows under a magical light was like waving a sign reading "Eat me, eat me!" and jumping up and down with lettuce sticking out of one's ears, but Quatre had declined to point this out to the priests... Surviving the shadow plane, after all, was part of the test, and surviving was a lot harder when you were the only thing that glowed; the test wasn't supposed to be easy.

Quatre shifted his grip on his sword; he hadn't put the weapon away since his first encounter with one of the denizens of the shadow plane. If he hadn't been fully covered in enchanted plate mail he wouldn't still be walking, or breathing. He thanked the gods that the priests at least allowed those who took the test to decide on their own equipment.

The young blonde touched a small medallion that was hanging around his neck. It was growing warm, and he nearly sighed in relief. He didn't have much more time to spend here, then. The medal was a magical link to the material plane, and apparently the priests watching from the other end were deciding to bring him back. Still, he continued to walk forward, instead of standing still and waiting for the magic portal to open. Partly he walked forward on survival instinct—staying too long in one place on this demon-filled plane wasn't wise—but something, an odd little itch almost at the edge of his mind, called him forward.

Quatre almost yelped as he stumbled, so preoccupied with his thoughts that he had lost track of where he was going. Immediately berating himself for doing something as stupid and suicidal as getting preoccupied in a demon-filled realm, the young man looked down to see what he'd tripped over. Staggering backwards, Quatre knelt cautiously, staring wide-eyed at the thing that had tripped him.

The "thing" was a young man, about his own age, Quatre guessed, sprawled face down and naked. He was dead or unconscious, Quatre couldn't tell, and he clutched a long ebony scythe and something ragged and torn that may once have been a knapsack.

Hesitating, fearing that it might be a strange shape-shifting demon, Quatre reached out and brushed his fingers over the pale skin of the strange man's shoulder. He was deathly cold, but Quatre sensed no danger in him, and as the young blonde touched the unconscious man's throat, he felt the weakest of pulses. Deciding that, strange as it was, the being before him was indeed human, Quatre took a closer look, gently turning the stranger onto his back, making it easier for the unconscious man to breathe.

The naked man was almost white, his skin so pale it seemed he'd never seen the sun. His hair was ragged and dirty, and his body was so thin and bruised it made Quatre wince just to look at it. There as a deep gouge across the unconscious man's chest, and it looked rather recent. Brows furrowed in concern over the unconscious man's state, Quatre forgot to be cautious. He set his sword down and placed his hands over the man's body, eyes closing as he concentrated on drawing healing magic through his own body and into the stranger's.

The blonde was making a little headway when heat at his chest startled him out of the healing trance. Magic that was not his own spread over his body, and he clutched desperately at the pale man, practically falling over the unconscious body in an attempt to drag it with him through the magical portal. He barely had time to regret leaving his sword before there was a moment of disorienting whiteness, and when Quatre blinked the spots of color from his vision, he found himself sprawled on the stone floor of the Temple of Light.

Looking around, Quatre nearly sagged in relief when he spotted the naked stranger next to him, still clutching his scythe and sack. Hardly noticing the gaggle of people that were surrounding and talking at him, Quatre knelt next to the wounded man, voice rising sharply to cut through the other voices in the room.

"This man needs help! Bring a healer, and blankets!" He stood, glaring sternly at the surprised faces of the clergy, until several priests moved forward and began attending to the unconscious stranger. Quatre watched a moment, then frowned. "And... when he's healed and clean... put him in a dark room." He himself was still adjusting to the brightness of the Temple; he could only imagine what would happen if the stranger had been in the shadow plane for long, and he opened his eyes to the sunlight brilliance of the temple.

Quatre was beginning to fidget, moving forward to fuss at the priests when two large arms encircled him, lifting him off the ground, plate mail and all. Quatre gave a small, strangled "Eep!" before he was swung in the air once and the breath was effectively knocked out of him.

"Master Quatre!"

The blonde looked up at the broad, grinning face of his friend and servant and managed a wide smile, despite the pain in his ribs from the larger man's enthusiastic hug.

"Forgive me Master Quatre, but we were all so worried! But we needn't have been. You're a paladin now!"

"Th-thank you, Rashid." Quatre said faintly, inhaling sharply. He hesitated a moment, then straightened, looking first at the large muscled man that was beaming at him, and then down at his boots. He'd almost forgotten about the test, with worry for the strange man, and though he felt a faint stab of triumph in the back of his mind, most of his emotions we still tied up in worry for the pale stranger. Still, he knew the priests' abilities at healing were better than his own, so with only one last, concerned glance at the man on the floor, Quatre turned his full attention back to Rashid and smiled as brightly as he could. "Let's go tell the others, before they worry themselves gray," he said cheerfully. "You're like a bunch of mother hens."

"Really, Master Quatre." Rashid folded his arms over his chest, "With the stunts you pull, we all have every right to worry about you!"

Laughing, Quatre led the way out of the chamber, "All right! But you can stop fussing. I'm okay."

"Master Quatre!" A large chorus of whoops greeted the young blonde as he exited the inner sanctum of the Temple, and he smiled, greeting each of his adopted family with a smile and a few words.

"Master Quatre, the high priest wishes to see you." Rashid touched the short blonds' arm as he was enduring an enthusiastic pat on the back from one of the taller Maguanacs.

Smiling and waving at the relieved soldiers, Quatre turned and followed Rashid into one of the side corridors, shoulders slumping slightly as soon as he was out of the Maguanac's visibility.

Rashid chuckled, catching the gesture out of the corner of his eyes. "They are simply relieved to see you well, Master Quatre."

"I know," Quatre murmured, a little embarrassed, and looking at the floor.

"They are also proud of what you have accomplished."

"Mmm." Quatre nodded.

"The priests say the young man you found will be fine."

Quatre's head shot up and he found himself staring into Rashid's amused and intelligent eyes. "Ah... oh. That's good."

"I thought that was distracting you. Come, Master Quatre, you have to finish the ceremony with the high priest. Observe the formalities, and then I'm sure you can go fuss over the hurt boy and distract the healers to your heart's content."

Blushing red, Quatre gave Rashid a rather steely look, which only earned him another amused chuckle.

The rest of the ceremony went smoothly. It was solemn and respectful, but also very long. The high priest acknowledged Quatre's accomplishment in front of a small audience of important religious leaders, and Quatre spoke the Oath of Protection, binding himself to the service of good and of his god and his king. He went through the ceremony in a bit of a blur, hardly hearing the words he or the priest spoke, finding himself being led out of the chamber by Rashid with no clear memory of what had transpired. He was distantly aware of Rashid saying he needed to rest. It had been a while since he'd last slept; two days of staying awake and praying, actually. And the battle with the demon at the beginning of his test... Quatre stumbled, resting a moment against the large, steady mass that was Rashid before he attempted to move again.

"Master Quatre! You must rest. It's been too long since you slept!"

"But... The boy..."

"He'll be taken care of! You can visit him after you rest!"

".... I did it!" Quatre mutter happily, gazing blearily up at his friend, the reality finally sinking in. "I actually did it..."

"That you did, Master Quatre." Rashid steered the blond gently down the corridor. "And now you can take a little well earned rest."

------------------------------------

Duo clawed his way to wakefulness, fighting the darkness away from his mind then carefully turning his thoughts to the mental inspection of his body and his memories. Last thing he recalled was fighting a very disgruntled cat creature, and then falling and then... Then he couldn't remember after that. He didn't remember winning the fight, which didn't please him. Most recent memory catalogued, Duo moved on to quick appraisal of his body. He was... Warm. Which was unusual; and laying in something soft, covered in... Cloth? Too weird. He opened his eyes and encountered a level of light that nearly blinded him. He shut his eyes again quickly, flinching away from the brightness. He curled a little, hands rising to cover his eyes protectively. This was very not right. Brightness and light had stopped existing a long time ago, they had no right to come back into his life like this!

For a moment Duo considered the possibility that he was dead; there were all the signs. He was on something soft, and he was warm, and he didn't hurt, which was odd, since he knew the shadow-cat had slashed him a good one. And it was bright. All very definite signs of not being alive, as far as he was concerned. However, he reasoned, if he were dead, the light shouldn't affect him. Of course, he wasn't sure on this point, he couldn't recall ever having been dead before.

Keeping one hand over his eyes, Duo slowly sat up. He heard a soft sound to his left and whipped his head in that direction, wishing he dared open his eyes, but too afraid of the light. Something touched his hand and he jerked back from the cool feeling of metal. The creature that he couldn't see made a soft noise, then something warm touched his hand. Flesh. Something flesh was taking his hand away from his eyes.

Hissing Duo tried to kick at the creature that was doing such things to him, but his legs were entangled in the soft warmth, the cloth that surrounded him, and all he managed to do was tangle himself. The creature took advantage of his incapacitated state, and the flesh touched his temple. Immediately Duo felt a wave of warmth spread from the sensation on his forehead and he fell back onto the bed, boneless, slipping into unconsciousness.

The second time Duo woke up, he opened his eyes before he could remind himself not to. He flinched his eyes closed quickly, but then opened them again, a puzzled frown twitching at his brow. He remembered the flesh and the creature and being unconscious. He was still warm and covered in something soft, but the bright light was gone, instead a band of metal wrapped around his head and cupped his eyes. He found he could see quite normally through the glass and metal. He reached a hand up, tentatively lifting the strange contraption away from his eyes. When blinding light peaked around the metal Duo let the eye mask cover his eyes again. Blinking spots from his vision he frowned, pushing himself abruptly to a sitting position and looking around, taking stock of his very strange surroundings.

He was in a room, on a bed. That in itself was really just rather weird, considering the last few years of his life. He was clothed in a night gown; again, an anomaly. There were a few candles around the room; the source of the blinding light, though as he looked at them through the strange glasses they seemed not to shed any light at all. The room was small, and there was a second bed, a chair, and a small table, and that was it. Duo was the only person in the room.

There was a door, near the foot of his bed, and he could hear noises beyond it, but they were indistinct. Sliding carefully out of bed Duo tested the floor; it was solid, made out of stone, and chilly. The almost normal sensation grounded Duo, and he crept towards the door silently, pressing his ear against it, listening for all he was worth.

There were voices, outside. Mostly they were speaking softly, but Duo fancied he could almost understand them. They sounded... Human. And they spoke a language he'd only heard from his own mouth in a long while. His heart did a strange flip-flop in his chest, apprehension, wariness, and survival instinct warring with elation and a strange, bitter joy that wrenched hope up from where he'd buried it and stuffed it into his throat. Backing away from the door Duo sat heavily back down on his bed, wrapping his mind around the concept that he might... Be back in his own world.

He was still rolling thoughts over and over in his head when the door opened. Head shooting up like a startled deer Duo watched the person who entered warily. It was a he, and he was short, blond and wearing a strange golden robe. He had blue eyes, and the sweetest smile Duo could ever remember seeing. It was almost impossible to be wary of the stranger, but Duo managed it anyway, eyeing the young man in the doorway distrustfully, though his expression was rather completely masked by the dark glasses.

The blond took a few steps into the room, expression joyful. "You're awake!"

Duo stared, surprised he could, indeed, understand the words. He'd learned the language of the shadow, but this was a language he'd known as long as he could remember, it was... Comforting to hear words, any words, in that language. "You're human." He said, mouth on automatic, while his brain attempted to cope.

The blonde's smile grew wider. "Yes!" he said enthusiastically. "So are you." He stepped closer, careful, non-threatening, but still... Exuberant. "My name's Quatre Raberba Winner... I found you on the shadow plane. How are you feeling?"

Duo blinked at the strange man, mouth twitching into a slight, surprised smile. "Duo Maxwell." He said carefully, not moving away from the advancing blond by sheer force of will. "So... You're the one who found me? Um... Where am I?" he raised a hand to push his bangs from his face, staring at Quatre, examining the blond closely. He decided he liked him. He didn't know why, but he just... Trusted the guy. His instincts had kept him alive for this long, so he didn't question, just went with it. "I'm hungry, actually."

Quatre laughed, sitting on the bed across from him. "I imagine. Rashid!" a large, burly man poked his head through the door and Duo couldn't help staring. The guy was huge. "Please ask the preists to send food for my friend." Quatre smiled at Duo, and the large man grunted, exiting the room. "You're in the Temple of Light at Kano. How do you like the glasses? I helped design them. Can you see okay?"

"...Friend?" Duo stared at Quatre, then started to laugh. The noise was odd to his own ears, he hadn't heard it in so long. "You're a weird one, Quatre. You don't even know me. You picked me up in... In the shadow plane! And you call me a friend?"

Quatre blushed, and looked down at the stone floor. "Well... No. I don't know you. But I fee..." The blond placed a hand over his heart, looking back up at Duo, his expression earnest. "I don't know why but I feel like... I can trust you."

Duo stared at Quatre for several minutes, not sure how to take the blonds words, especially since he felt the same. He shrugged after a moment, and smiled wryly, "I don't know why either, but I like you." He stroked his hand nervously on the sheet, looking away from Quatre's face and frowning.

"If you don't mind my asking... why were you in the shadow realm?"

"... It's a long story. Ask me later."

"As you will it. But is... Is there anything you'd like to know? Anything I can help you with? Maybe the Temple can help you find your family?"

Duo looked up at Quatre, blinking at the barrage of questions. "There's a lot I'd like to know, actually." He said softly. "Most of it can wait though. And... I don't have a family." He picked at the hem of his nightgown, frowning. "I do have a... A friend. I don't know if he's still around, or... Or what. But... I'd like to find out."

Quatre nodded. "I see. Will you let me help you? I would like to help you find your friend."

Duo shook his head. "Do what you want." He said quietly.

"Then I will help you. I have... One duty I must perform first, but I think the then I could help you. After all, I found you and brought you back, it is my responsibility to see that you are safe."

Duo tilted his head curiously, watching the blond. "What duty is this, that you gotta do?"

"... I'll tell you tomorrow, if you like. But I'm being rude and inconsiderate! You just woke up, and already I'm... Look, we'll get you fed, and then maybe if you want, if you feel up to it, a bath. Then you can rest and we'll talk tomorrow. Is that okay?" The blond looked sincerely worried.

Duo's eyes widened. "A bath? Food sounded good enough, but... A bath? Q-man, now I /know/ I'm dead and in heaven. You have to be an angel."

Quatre blinked at Duo's words, surprised greatly by the nickname, but pleased that the strange man seemed rather normal. Most people who spent any amount of time in the shadow plane tended to end up raving lunatics, and something about Duo almost screamed that he had spent more time than Quatre would like to contemplate in the shadow realm. "You aren't dead, that I know of. And I'm just a human, but I'm glad you're happy." Quatre said softly.

"You bet I'm happy. I don't even mind wearing this dress, for food and a bath." Duo grinned and Quatre answered his expression with a smile.

Rashid did return with food, and Duo had never in his life tasted anything so delicious. While he ate, Quatre explained that his things were in a storage room, and would be returned to him in the morning, which gave Duo a great feeling of relief; he'd hate to have lost his 'scythe. True to his word, Quatre led Duo through a few hallways and to a steamy room with a sunken basin of a tub, and Duo spent the better part of two hours thoroughly cleaning himself and his hair, and then just enjoying the heat and the warmth and the water.

After that, Duo was well and truly tired, and he followed his blond rescuer back to the small, secluded room. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow; years of paranoia and wariness giving into exhaustion that pulled him into black unconsciousness.

---------------------------------------

Quatre had delivered actual clothing and some breakfast the next morning, and Duo was happily tearing into the food while the blond sat on the other bed and watched.

"Duo." Quatre said quietly, and the tone of the blonde's voice made the long-haired man pause in his eating and look up at his companion. "I've been assigned to help the army in the investigation of one of the mountain towns. But when I'm done, I've requested that I be given time to help you find your friend. The Temple has granted my request, and offered to let you stay here, for as long as it takes me to finish my first duty. Is... Is this okay?"

Duo looked at Quatre over his food, shoulders stiff. "I'd... Rather not." He said slowly, "Stay here, that is." The violet-eyed young man looked down at his plate, scowling. "But, if that's how it's gotta be... I /do/ want your help..."

"You could come with me." Quatre said, very softly. "The temple would be willing to provide you with supplies, if you were helping me with the investigation... It might be dangerous though, if you don't want..."

"I don't care about /danger/. I'm very good at taking care of myself." Duo fixed Quatre with a steady stare. "Me and my 'scythe can take care of ourselves. I'll help you out, after all, I do owe you." The long haired boy grinned. "So when do we leave?"

"A little before noon. You have time to finish breakfast and help pick out what supplies you need." Quatre's voice was relieved. He was strangely happy that the other boy would accompany him.

"Great! Could you get me a brush and a tie for my hair then? It needs braiding. I'll finish eatin' and we can get ready!"

Quatre smiled, "Sure!" and left the room to get Duo the requested items.

It took a few hours to get everything together and ready, and then another half hour for Quatre to convince the Maguanacs that he didn't need all, or even half of them to accompany him to the town of Cerauge. Eventually Duo had all the supplies he needed, including a set of battle priest's robes that had raised a few eyebrows. The priests' had been reluctant, at first to allow Duo the robes, but with some persuasion, and help from Quatre, Duo had wrangled the garments from the Temple, though he refused to answer any questions as to why he preferred the robes to a more normal set of clothing.

Duo also left the Temple for half an hour with a small purse Quatre loaned him, against Rashid's advice. When he returned half the money was gone, and when Quatre asked what he'd bought, the braided boy just grinned and handed the purse back, not answering. He still wore the darkened glasses, and Quatre was too pleased with the fact that the spells were holding up on them, to pry much.

Not long after they were organized, Duo, Quatre, and five Maguanacs, including the very large Rashid, were riding from the city, headed west.


	4. Chapter Three

Okay! As you might have noticed, I'm not only using the G-boys (who aren't mine), but also a lot of concepts from D&D. The D&D stuff is not mine, nor is some of the world's history, that credit goes to Jordon, who is one of the inspirations to this little piece of insanity.

Thanks go to Chiad, for her beta-reading and help with scheming, Jordon for sparking this, and Rin for being a lovely muffin and helping with the plot. And thanks to everyone who has, or will comment! I appreciate the feedback!

Chapter Three

"So what's with the burly bodyguards, anyway?" It was their third day out of Kano; Duo had been quiet for the first day and a half. In the evening of the second day it was as if someone had flipped a switch, and the braided youth had started talking animatedly with anyone who would listen.

After his initial surprise, Quatre had found he didn't mind the chatter at all. Duo was intelligent, a good conversationalist, and had a wicked sense of humor. In fact, Duo was one of the easiest people to talk to Quatre had ever encountered; he was also refreshingly blunt, something that delighted the young paladin.

"Rashid and the Maguanacs?" Quatre asked mildly, glancing over at his strange new friend.

"Maguanacs... Yeah. They weren't too pleased to send you off with such a small guard. They call you Master and all that..." Duo raised a hand from the reins, grinning at Quatre and making an effeminate gesture with his hand and body language, "Pleathe," Duo lisped, rather accurately impersonating some of the nobles Quatre had known, "Don't tell me I've been traveling with a _princth,_ I don't know what I would do!"

Quatre laughed, too surprised and delighted by Duo's acting to stop himself. When he got his breath back under control he eyed Duo, trying to keep his voice stern, and failing. "Really, Duo, that is unkind. Lords do not..." He paused, then tried to stifle a smirk. "Well, they do not _all_ act like that." Facing forward again, Quatre managed to compose himself, except for the little tug of skin at the corner of his mouth which indicated he was biting his lip. "Actually... How I met Rashid and the others is kind of a long story."

Duo snorted, glancing from Quatre to the road ahead of them with a wryly lifted eyebrow. "Well then, I dunno. I mean, we're in such a _hurry_ here, and we'll be there _any minute,_ you might wanna save it for when we have the time."

Quatre lifted his chin, staring down his nose at Duo in his most arrogant manner. "Sarcasm is not becoming in anyone." He sniffed, eyes dancing with suppressed laughter. "Alright, alright. To start with, I am not a prince, exactly. I am, however, the only male heir of a very influential and wealthy house." The blond looked ahead of them, eyes hooded with contemplation. "My family, the Winners, are known as pacificists. I will not go into detail, but my father and I have had a number of disagreements about that policy of pacifism. My father is a good man, but I think, in times of unrest like these, strength of arms is necessary; my father thinks I am nuts." Quatre smiled a little bitterly, hands tightening on the reins.

"I was, I should mention, a very spoiled little brat of a child. I ran away after one argument with my father and the Maguanacs kidnapped me." The blond's smile turned happy, his mind obviously recalling something special. "Well, they had no intention of hurting me, they were just trying to help some other people, and my father was happy to comply with their terms. But... They were betrayed by their own, and I was the one who apprehended the traitor. Unfortunately, they were attacked anyway, and I helped them fight."

Quatre fell silent for a while, and Duo just as was about to speak, the blond spoke up again. "They were a family. They were not related, but the Maguanacs had a bond unlike anything I'd ever encountered. And my short stay with them gave me a goal. I wanted to have the same pride in myself and my abilities and accomplishments that they had. I went back home and took one of the people the Maguanacs were helping with me. He—the man I took with me—encouraged me to become a paladin; father opposed my decision, but I went ahead with it anyway. I met with the Maguanacs again shortly after that, and they have become my family." Quatre swallowed, not looking at Duo. "So... When I found you, that was part of my final test to become a paladin. I want to help people, but I do not want to be helpless and weak, like my father. Peace is a wonderful ideal, but sometimes blood must be shed, no matter how we may wish otherwise."

Duo was silent for a short while, considering the information Quatre had given him. Quatre, for his part, did nothing to break the comfortable quiet they had fallen into. The Maguanacs were riding ahead and behind the two, but were, for the moment, keeping a polite distance.

"You're what, nineteen?" Quatre nearly jumped at Duo's voice, turning to stare at his companion's odd expression.

"Seventeen, actually." The blond replied.

Duo gave a low whistle, glancing sideways at Quatre, through the dark glasses. "Seventeen. I don't know much about this, but aren't most paladins at least twenty somethin' before they take that test?"

"...Yes."

"You must be one hell of a fighter."

Quatre blushed, "Not really. I am competent in holy magic, but I am not really that exceptional as a fighter."

"I don't believe you." Duo said flatly, watching the road in front of them.

"... I am good at finding an enemy's weakness, at building a strategy around exploiting it, but I really am not a great fighter."

"Maybe you're great at tactics, but I think you're selling yourself short in ability. If genius and magic were all it took to be a paladin, don't you think the land's'd be swarming with them by now?"

Quatre sighed, looking at the sky. "Why were you in the shadow plane?" he asked abruptly, changing the subject.

"... I don't remember. Or, well, I crossed a wizard, I guess. But I don't exactly remember much after that."

"Well, what did you do that made the wizard angry enough to send you to the shadow plane?" Quatre was now very curious.

"I was robbing him." Duo said casually, laughing at the look on Quatre's face when he glanced over to see the blonde's reaction. "You look like an upset fish, Q-bean."

"But... You... Why? Why did you rob him?" Quatre managed to ask, after a few false starts.

"'Cause me 'n my friends were starving, n' he was rich. We figured he could spare a bit of his stuff." Duo was so nonchalant about it, Quatre found himself struggling between believing the braided youth was serious, or thinking Duo was making it up.

Quatre closed his eyes a moment, listening to Duo's words with his empathy, rather then his ears.

"You are... I am sorry."

Duo lifted a shoulder, a half shrug, his expression distant and troubled. "Why? It's not like you were the one who put us on the streets. I'm just..."

"Just what?"

"Nah. Doesn't matter. So tell me... How does Rashid get his hair to _do_ that?" Duo gestured towards the large Maguanac, who was riding a respectful distance away. The man's hair was parted and more or less sticking straight up in two spikes.

Quatre smiled and let Duo change the subject. "You know, I never have quite figured that out. And I have never gotten the courage to ask him about it." The blond said with a grin.

Duo laughed. "Heh. Maybe I'll have to ask 'im, relieve our curiosity." The braided teen grinned, then touched the edge of his dark glassed. "So, Quat, when can I take these off?"

"About four or five days, to be safe." Quatre replied. Duo's troubled, unhappy expression remained in Quatre's memory, even as the two traded stories and jokes, and the blond couldn't help wondering what Duo had gone through in his time in the realm of shadow.

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"_This isn't our business!"_

"Maybe it isn't your business, but it is mine." Wufei stated coldly, strapping on his wrist guards, double checking the light armor to be sure it wasn't damaged since the last time he'd cleaned it; the day before.

"_What's your business is mine."_ The dragon grumbled, _"But I don't think that this is your business. I don't like it. It's tainted."_

"Which is why it is my business. I would be worse than a coward to leave things as they are there." The warrior snarled, securing the pins that kept his hair up in its complex knot of braids. "Justice must be seen to."

"_You could leave it to this country to clean up its own messes. You have more important things to do."_ The dragon protested.

"Much as I value your opinion, Nataku, in this case, you are very wrong. I cannot leave this situation as it is. This country may be able to deal with that demon, but they may not be able to. I will not take that chance." Wufei said softly, eyes hard as he stood, holding out his hand absently to the small, sinuous form of the dragon.

"_But your quest..."_ The dragon Nataku tried again, practically flowing up Wufei's arm to curl around his shoulders and neck.

"Is of utmost importance. But it can wait for this."

"_If something should happen to you on this fool's errand, who will retrieve the Altron?"_ Nataku asked peevishly, settling her head under Wufei's ear. _"What will happen to the Shenlong?"_

"Nothing will happen to me." Wufei said shortly, picking up his pack and throwing his cloak on, concealing the small dragon on his shoulders under the brown fabric.

"_Arrogance will kill you."_

"It isn't arrogance. I will not allow anything to happen to me, not until my errand is fulfilled. You know this."

"_I just wish I could believe it was that simple."_

"You know this is the correct course of action."

"_I know. That's what makes it worse."_

--------------------------------

_Duo stood in the center of a field. He could see the field clearly, but there was no color, no light to see either the field or color by, but he could, all the same, see his surroundings._

_There were a number of shapes around him, towering, lumbering, ominous shapes with glowing eyes and long, wickedly clawed fingers. One of the shapes stepped towards him, slightly taller than the rest, and vastly different in appearance. This being had long flowing hair, for one, and it had white skin, not the soulless black of the others. The shape in front of Duo was also very male, and handsome, in a nightmarish way; he was vaguely human looking, the handsome lines of his face, the shape of his body, but he was obviously not a human._

_The strange creature stepped so close that Duo could feel the heat of his body. The tall nightmare figure reached out a hand and touched Duo's braid, murmured his name, the glowing eyes looking down at the small human almost... Fondly._

"_What troubles you, little brother?" the creature asked, his voice silky, deep, like shadow given sound._

_Duo looked up, meeting the disturbing eyes, and smiled, anxiety, tension, fear all draining from his body in a single relieved sigh. "So much...." Duo whispered, taking the shadow creature's hand, and sitting abruptly, drawing the tall nightmarish apparition with him._

_The two of them sat in the field, which abruptly emptied of any presence but their own._

_Duo frowned at the black and grey landscape, not seeing anything as he leaned into the comforting presence of the being at his side. He closed his eyes, letting the other's presence soothe him._

"_Things are changing, Ereshki..." Duo said softly._

"_I know."_

"_Will you leave?"_

"_Not unless you wish it, little one." Ereshki placed a clawed hand comfortingly at the back of Duo's neck._

"_No!" Duo's fists clenched, eyes narrowing as he looked at the tall figure sitting calmly by him. "We are the same. You can't leave me."_

"_Then I will not."_

"_But you hate the material plane."_

"_It is your home." Ereshki smiled coldly, "And you are mine. I protect what is mine. I will not abandon you, no matter how I detest the world of humans."_

_Duo closed his eyes again. "Then it's alright. You'll stay."_

"_You may relax little one." The shadows darkened around the two and Duo allowed the darkness to engulf him, to hold him in it's comforting embrace, and plunge him into sleep without dreams._

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"Duo. Duo... Duo!"

Duo blinked, staring fuzzily at the half-annoyed half-amused expression on the cherubic face of his new friend, as the blond stood over him.

"Quatre?" the braided boy muttered, dazed from an unnaturally peaceful night of sleep.

"No. Your fairy godmother." The blond said, exasperation in his voice. "What _were_ you dreaming? I've been trying to wake you up for ten minutes! Are you feeling all right?" Sudden concern tinged the paladin's expression.

"Huh? Yeah. I'm fine. I was just... Sleeping really well I guess." Duo shook the remnants of sleep from his mind, already becoming more alert and aware of his surroundings.

"Well, alright. We'll arrive there in mid afternoon, so there isn't really a rush, but I didn't think you'd want to sleep through breakfast..." Quatre said, placated as Duo began to rise.

"Hell no! I never pass up food! Thanks... My dearest fairy godmother." Duo said cheerfully, bouncing past the blond in all his rumpled nightshirt glory to see what Rashid was serving.

"Hmmph." Quatre said, with a great deal of dignity, turning and following the long-haired boy, a small smile threatening the corners of his lips, despite his best attempts to suppress it.

---------------------------------

Heero reined in his horse, looking at the small village in a fold of the mountains. Cerauge was not a large town, but it was very picturesque, nestled in the mountains and surrounded by trees. It was quite a lovely sight to ride up to.

Trowa stopped next to his commander, looking down at the town just as Heero was, his calm face impassive. After a moment, the tall, green eyed ranger looked over at Heero and the messy haired commander nodded.

The two looked down the road again, at the little village. Neither of them were happy with this, they both felt it... Something felt fundamentally wrong. Nothing they could define, but the silent look and nod had confirmed it; something was off. They would proceed with caution.

Heero spurred his horse to a walk, and Trowa stayed still, looking over his shoulder at the small column of soldiers. "Make camp off the road here. No one is to proceed into town unless there is urgent news for the commander." Trowa said, is soft voice carrying to the whole line. "Do not come to town."

There was a soft murmur from the soldiers but the line of horses pulled off the road, led by one of the lieutenants. Trowa watched for a moment, then, satisfied that the soldiers were more then competent enough to set their own camp, he spurred his own mount on, catching up with the blue-eyed commander and falling into pace with him. Neither of them spoke as the entered the beautiful mountain village of Cerauge.

TBC

Phew. Wow, sorry this one took so long guys. ; stupid life, taking my time. I'll get chapter four out as soon as possible. Comments, as always, welcome! I like how Quatre came out in this and the last chapter.


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